Obesity in America

Have you ever considered the word “Obesity” as a word that should be categorized with HIV/AIDS, the Bubonic Plague, Malaria, Polio, Hepatitis B, SARS, smallpox, measles, cholera…..?Well, the words aforementioned are all notable epidemics, if you didn’t catch on. And, if you haven’t caught on that OBESITY is joining that crowd of deadly epidemiological threats, you should probably “listen up”.

Now, most of you who read this blog know that I am not an advocate for weight loss as much as I am an advocate for healthy body image and the prevention of eating disorders. However, these statistics are alarming and duly notable. If you are obese, I am going to assume you may have trouble with healthy body image. I am also going to assume you may have trouble with things such as anxiety, depression, physical health, interpersonal relationships, etc. By posting this information, I am not suggesting that all Americans need to strive for a specific runway model size. No, not at all. What I am suggesting and more so urging is that Americans take control of what they have control over: their overall health and wellbeing.Because we are a society that thrives on and lives by a code of instant gratification, we want what we want when we want it and WE WANT IT NOW. We don’t have time, nor make the time, to be mindful of what we fuel our bodies with. We take out, we microwave, we eat junk and we eat it on the run, and we order out of fast food windows. Often times, we don’t marinate and we don’t buy fresh. When we do, we still eat way too fast for our taste buds and our stomachs to enjoy what we’ve treated them with. We just overstimulate and overstuff and we don’t even take the time to like the foods we think are so comforting and satisfying, i.e. whoppers and tacos… yuck! I dare you to eat a whopper really, really slowwwww and I dare you to NOT taste the 5 day old, stale grease that disgustingly coats the roof of your mouth and your tongue. Bleh…America, we are a fast-paced, instant gratification seeking society. And we are beginning to be a seriously obese one at that. Did you know that by 2030, 42% of Americans are projected to be diagnosable as obese with countless others being diagnosed as MORBIDLY obese? I’m not suggesting we all starve ourselves and become super models, ok? I am instead strongly encouraging everyone to realize the follow statement: